


The Proper Method

by Bead



Series: The Ten Two Stories [2]
Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2008-07-08
Updated: 2008-07-08
Packaged: 2018-02-11 12:58:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,400
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2069121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bead/pseuds/Bead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It had taken the Doctor months to figure out the correct wooing procedure.  After all, he was (sort of) 900 years old or (sort of) 10 months, depending on how you looked at it. He didn’t have to do that way the last time (arranged marriage, with contracts and special robes and dry, dry ceremony and all) and he had the mating behavior of thousands of species and planets and mating behavior of planets, actually, running about his brain.  It was only natural that he be a bit confused.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Proper Method

**Author's Note:**

> This is, as so many things are, Seperis' fault. She started it.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

They don’t tell Jackie exactly how it happened, because, well, it’s private, and if she knew they’d become engaged and married in the same evening, she’d shriek the house down. 

It had taken the Doctor months to figure out the correct wooing procedure. After all, he was (sort of) 900 years old or (sort of) 10 months, depending on how you looked at it. He didn’t have to do that way the last time (arranged marriage, with contracts and special robes and dry, dry ceremony and all) and he had the mating behavior of thousands of species and planets and mating behavior of planets, actually, running about his brain. It was only natural that he be a bit confused.

( _Planeta gregaari_ are small, spherical creatures, seemingly without appendages or eyes or any sort of orifice. But they mate. Somehow. The probable males orbit around the probable females in an ever-decreasing spiral and then take up a stationary orbit around her for two cycles, de facto saying, one supposed, “You are my sun.” 

Their actual mating hasn’t been documented visually, because the coming together of two planets, however small, tends to generate a lot of heat and light and melts a lot of cameras.) 

While romantic gestures are often satisfying, the Doctor doesn’t think Rose would like him running rings around her for two months straight. He admits to himself that the novelty would wear off rather quickly. 

And it wasn’t as if he’d been studying mating habits of humans on his numerous visits to Earth. Not enough time for all that; plenty to do sorting out various alien whatnots. Buying chips with his girl. Blocking the odd invasion. Being slapped by her mother. 

He does know it’s proper – or at least was proper and now it’s a nod to more formal times – to ask the head of the family for the daughter’s hand in marriage. Rose, of course, is her own person - her own, brilliant Rose-type person - but time around Jackie Tyler has given him enough domestic sense that laying a bit of groundwork won’t go amiss. 

“Jackie,” he says over tea one afternoon when it’s just the two of them. “I’m going to ask Rose to marry me.” 

“Well I should think so!” she says, mildly outraged. “Taking her all over creation and back in a little blue box and running her ragged from one planet to another. All the trouble you’ve caused her, I should think you should ask her to marry you, seeing as she’s the only one crazy enough to go to another universe to get your skinny arse back. It’s about time you proposed!” 

He has to take a moment to cycle through all that. “What?! What? Hey! I mean, thank you? And, hey!” 

“Oh, don’t get all puffed up. I like you well enough and so does Pete. And Rose thinks you hung the moon.” She fixes him with a shrewd look. “You didn’t have to say a peep to me, and you did. Thank you for that.” 

That done, all he has to do is find the proper approach. 

~*~ 

The Doctor brings Rose a pregnant goat, signaling his intentions toward settled life and children in the Bawantan manner. Delighted with the gesture - not an easy trick finding a pregnant goat (as close as he can get to a Bawantan naahnaah) in London - he beams at her. 

After she and the goat stop startling each other, (Nnna! Hey! NnnnNNA! HEY!) she says it is _not_ staying in their flat, and it goes to the mansion for her little brother to play with. 

He never gets as far as explaining what the goat was for; Rose thought it was about his current fascination with cheese. He didn’t feel like correcting her. 

Looking to the Keltar, a very lovely and intelligent race, very sophisticated, but in a good way, a homey, lovely way, he makes attractive piles of rough-hewn, precious and semi-precious stones in the back garden as a display of his wealth, stability and keenly-honed color sense. She congratulates him on his modern art installation and asks him to water the flowers. 

Next, the Doctor chooses the virile and exciting mating dance of the Reema of Poosh. She laughs so hard that she chokes on her wine and finishes the evening curled on the floor in a little ball, giggling, until she finally falls asleep. He watches her for awhile, chin in hand, then scoops her up to carry her to bed. 

“Fanks for cheering me up,” she whispers to his collarbone. He presses a kiss to her hair and rolls his eyes at himself. 

She looks up at him as he lays her gently against the pillows. Her hair runs gleaming gold against the white sheets and the moonlight sparkles in her eyes. He’s seen her on a hundred different planets, under moons and stars of every color, but it jolts him every time, every single time she looks at him like this; she’s so beautiful, and her face has so much love in it. She crossed a universe. It takes his breath away. 

“You’ve been extra sweet to me lately,” she whispers softly, reaching up to cup his cheek. “You don’t have to pamper me or build me things or buy me things, you know that right?”

“Maybe I want to,” he whispers back. “Maybe I like it.” 

“All right,” she says, leaning up for a short, sweet kiss. “I just want you, you know. Jus’ you.” 

He can’t help but grin at her. “Same to you, Rose Tyler.” 

~*~

The next night they go out for chips, and wander around London, munching and reminding each other of various exploits, holding hands and bumping shoulders and laughing too loud. 

When they get home, she goes to putter around in the bathroom like she does (women’s skin care is a mystery he does not want to solve) and he gives himself a small pep talk. 

It’s easy, jumping into the fray, knowing in a split second how to help and how to solve things and save a country, save a child, save a world. 

It is much, much harder, harder than he ever imagined, to stay put and make a slow decision that would last forever. A forever he’ll witness every moment of with her, for better or worse, for adventure or boredom. For as long as they both shall live. 

It’s the hardest thing he’s ever done. Harder than leaving the TARDIS behind. Harder than leaving her on that beach, once. Harder than being alone.

The Doctor blinks his way out of his thoughts and Rose is already in the room fussing with the duvet. He hurries to finish his preparations. 

“Rose.” 

“Mmm?” 

He swallows and puts more of what he’s feeling in his voice. “Rose.”

She turns, hair lifting and twirling around her shoulders. He kneels before her, naked. 

Rose looks at him in shock, then covers her mouth. “What are you on about?” she teases, and then she really looks at him and goes silent, her eyes wide. 

He kisses her feet, her belly, her heart, her mouth, her third eye and where her fourth eye should be and murmurs something quite seriously in his native language. And then he waits for her to get it. 

It doesn’t take long. Rose steps forward and searches his face, clever, clever mind working behind her questioning eyes. 

"Did you just ask me to marry you?"

And he, terrified, nods.

Rose sobs out a laugh, punches him in the arm and says, "I thought you was doing something kinky!” She laughs and cries and throws her arms around him and says yes. Yes yes yes. 

He kisses her sweet and slow (and tries not too get distracted by it, kissing Rose is always very distracting) and he says, "Your clothes have to be off for this next bit." 

Rose laughs again and her hands shake, but he just stands and watches her, smiling and smiling but still a little scared.

She takes his hand and starts to lead him to the bed, but he doesn't move. 

"Wait,” he says gently. He takes her other hand and he whispers his real name to her, and then he teaches her the words he wants to say to her and where they’re from and what they mean. And then they say the words. 

And then they are married.

 

~*~*~*~*~

**Author's Note:**

> This, from a question the first time I posted it: _Well, reading the end of the fic, I suppose he was just following the traditions of his people. It is more significant to him if he does it that way, I'm sure._
> 
> Keep reading and you'll find out what the kisses mean, but I've bolded it if you'd like to skip...
> 
> It was significant that he at least use some of the words from who he was before. He eliminated a lot of the pomp and circumstance (and enormous, heavy robes) and stripped (no pun intended) everything down to its core essence. He might have mixed in some bits of marriage ceremonies that he liked to create something just for them, to encompass what they had already experienced together, because most Gallifreyian marriages are arranged for political or clannish reasons, and though they have romantic language, they're really about as passion filled as an afternoon tea with your grumpy aunt Agnes.
> 
> In my mind there is some sort of face to face betrothal ceremony where the intendeds speak their vows and formally touch their own feet, belly, hearts, mouths (which I forgot) third eyes and then place solemn kisses on their fourth eyes and join hands (the fourth is right next to the third eye, giving them "The Sight" in binocular vision, which is really quite useful in being able to see the whole of Time.) 
> 
> The Doctor chose a far more intimate and vulnerable way of pledging himself to Rose, and to him, he was putting himself out there without getting a similar promise from her at the same time. He was essentially saying, "I give everything I am to you ."
> 
> The words were partially stuff he felt was important for them and partially from the old Traditional Gallifrey ceremony, but said starkers making promising to join with another body to body and mind to mind, it adds quite a whallop. 
> 
>  
> 
> **Here's what I had in mind as to the meanings of the kisses:**
> 
> **Feet: I cherish the journey that brought you to me; I rejoice that you stand before me; I bless the way that lies before us.**
> 
> **Belly: I will cherish your body with mine own; all of you that was and is I embrace and celebrate; may our union be filled with joy and may our joy bring life.**
> 
> **Heart: (first heart) I tie my love of life to yours and I will protect your heart and your life as if it were my own. (second heart) This regeneration is finite; but you will always have a part of me, and I you. (He of course, just kissed once, and that covered both vows.)**
> 
> **Mouth: My journey with yours, my body with yours, my life with yours and my wisdom with yours; freely given as a kiss.**
> 
> **Third Eye: I join my mind to yours and share with you all that I am and all that I was and all that I could be.**
> 
> **Fourth Eye: I join my mind with yours and together we will sharpen our understanding of what was, what will be and what is now. May our eyes see Time clearly and may our doubled Sight aid our lives work, and our lives joy.**
> 
> Something like that. Thanks for reading!


End file.
